Targeting Aberrant STAT3 Signaling in CTCL
Grantee: Sergei Koralov, Associate Professor, NYU Langone, NY
Amount: DKK 2,676,248
Grant category: Research Grants in open competition
Year: 2020
Geography: USA
The goal of this project is to elucidate the mechanism behind the beneficial effects of atovaquone, a well-tolerated anti-microbial drug, on the rare type of skin cancer – the T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). It is known that atovaquone inhibits malignant cells from growing and may induce cell death, but the precise mechanism(s) is not known.
Sergei Koralov and his team have previously developed an animal model of the CTCL disease and will use this along with cells from patients to investigate the effects of atovaquone. Specifically, they will look at how the drug affects the gene regulating protein STAT3 as hyperactivation of this has shown to be critically important in the development of cancerous T-cells.
Given the outstanding tolerability of atovaquone, it is believed that if its mode of action can be deciphered it may prove a powerful tool in the future for treatment of malignant and inflammatory diseases.